‘Step back a little’: Tomi Lahren warns fellow MAGA Republicans against making Kyle Rittenhouse a ‘rock star’

Tomi Lahren isn’t exactly known for thoughtful, nuanced commentary; she is the type of far-right media troll who typically goes out of her way to say outrageous things to get attention. But during a Tuesday, December 21 appearance on Fox News’ “Outnumbered,” Lahren urged fellow MAGA Republicans to urge some caution when it comes to Kyle Rittenhouse and not turn the 18-year-old Midwesterner into a “rock star.”

Rittenhouse, now 18, is the vigilante who, in November, was acquitted of homicide charges after shooting three Black Lives Matter supporters (two of them fatally) with an AR-15-style weapon at a protest in Kenosha, Wisconsin in 2020. When Rittenhouse spoke at Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest event in Phoenix on December 20, he received a huge round of applause — which even Lahren was troubled by.

On “Outnumbered,” Lahren was part of a panel discussion that also included former MTV veejay turned libertarian/conservative pundit Lisa Kennedy Montgomery (one of the more thoughtful voices on the right), former White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany and host Harris Faulkner. Lahren stressed that while she wholeheartedly agreed with the “not guilty” verdict in Rittenhouse’s trial and believes he acted in self-defense in Kenosha, she has a problem with the type of high praise he is receiving in MAGA World.

“I do think that as conservatives, we need to be a little careful when it comes to this,” Lahren told her right-wing Fox News colleagues. “I believe we can put up Kyle Rittenhouse as someone who was innocent and who was bullied and mistreated by the media, but I think we should step back a little bit and maybe not treat him like he is a rock star or a celebrity. I don’t think that’s necessarily a good look for the conservative movement.”

Lahren continued, “He did what he had to do; he was defending himself. Let’s talk about self-defense. Let’s talk about the riots. Let’s talk about how everything went horribly, horribly wrong that day. But I think we should take a step back and not make the man Bon Jovi. But that is just my take.”

Montgomery agreed with much of what Lahren had to say, arguing, “This is still a tragedy. No one wants to be in this situation. It’s not something that should be celebrated.”

There were some wacky moments during the conversation, with Lahren saying the mainstream media had unfairly vilified Rittenhouse by describing him as a “vigilante” — as if showing up at a protest with an AR-15-style weapon isn’t the type of thing a vigilante would do. Nonetheless, Lahren’s assertion that Rittenhouse shouldn’t be turned into a “rock star” is quite a contrast to all the MAGA Republicans who are lavishing the 18-year-old with nonstop praise and adulation.